Many organisations are currently reviewing their business models, customer contracts and customer relationship management procedures against the requirements of the recently enacted Consumer Protection Act (CPA). Below is a list of a few recommended action items for companies conducting such due diligence exercises:
1. Applying the definition of goods and services to the companies goods [...]

The 1st of April 2011 saw the introduction of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA). This piece of legislation has been highly publicised with a significant drive being initiated by the Department of Trade and Industry, as well as the media, to ensuring consumers are educated in their rights. However, even with all the public interest [...]

The Minister of Trade and Industry published the Regulations and Threshold Determination pertaining to the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 on 1 April 2011.
Copies of the Regulations and the Determination (hot off the press) may be requested from Chetty Law - mail info@chettylaw.co.za.
The Consumer Protection Act secures many much needed rights for Consumers but [...]

The Protection of Personal Information Bill is legislation will change the way organisations collect, store and use personal information about their contacts and will effectively provide South Africa as a jurisdiction, parity with other countries that have implemented data protection legislation. A primary impact will be the propelling of South African organisations to permission based [...]

The Consumer Protection Act aims to protect the rights of Consumers by ensuring that the environment in which they operate is fair, accessible and sustainable. It also endeavours to encourage responsible Consumer behaviour. The Act sets out certain fundamental consumer rights, as well as highlights how to protect those rights. An essential practical characteristic to [...]

Heard of Facebook, Twitter, My Space, LinkedIn or Flickr? Collectively, these refer to (primarily) internet and mobile based publishing technologies that allow You, Me, our Friends and anyone else really, to share information in various forms with each other and the general public. Traditionally most social media tools were a means of personal social interaction. [...]

South African organisations have for some time inhabited a data protection law haven. Whilst the right to privacy is enshrined in the Constitution of South Africa, legislation that gives practical credence to such right and a Regulator to govern and administer corresponding data protection and privacy practices has been absent. That’s about to [...]

The automatic-renewal clause within contracts in South Africa is fairly commonplace. This clause is often included in fixed-term contracts and refers to the instant renewal of one’s contract upon reaching its expiry date. This will occur unless proper cancellation is effected by the Consumer prior to expiry. This type of renewal has recently made headlines [...]

A Records Retention Schedule assists organisations identify and manage the records that document the operations of the organisation.
A Records Retention will provide information on how long a record must be retained, for legal, evidentiary and operational purposes. A Records Retention Schedule also specifies when a record may be disposed of or destroyed. A proper Schedule [...]

The rapidly increasing use of the Internet by information professionals as a standard tool for disseminating access to materials and information means that they need to be aware of the risks associated with online publishing, the way the law is moving to address those risks, and what steps can [...]

Why enter into a Service Level Agreement?
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Setting, tracking and managing Service Levels is an important aspect of customer relations if you are a vendor and outsourcing management if you are a consumer of technology services. Service Levels should be negotiated up front as part of the outsourcing contract and consistently utilised as one of the [...]

Why Register Your Trademark?
Trademarks distinguish your goods and services from the same kind of goods and services supplied by others.
If your organisation has invested in the brand, identity, goodwill or reputation of your trademark (name, logo or slogan) you should consider registration of your trademark [...]

For many companies, a large portion of business is conducted using emails, instant messaging, cell phones and other electronic communications. Whilst the ability of such tools to deliver efficiency is unmatched, risks attached to the use of electronic communications must be managed. Potential risks include:
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